"Refreshments from 6.30pm" was arguably the most important element of Anish Kapoor's invitation to fellow artists and their friends to take part in a mass Gangnam Style video at his south London studio on Thursday ight. Was it the beer and wine that led to its success, or the calm direction of choreographer Akram Khan?

Whatever the answer, the event – in support of Ai Weiwei, after the Chinese authorities banned his parody of the viral video – was something of a triumph.

Around 250 people of varying Gangnam skills answered Kapoor's call, including artists Mark Wallinger, Bob and Roberta Smith and Tom Phillips, and arts establishment figures such as Alison Myners, chair of the ICA, and Tamara Rojo, artistic director of the English National Ballet.

"It had to be done," said Kapoor, proudly wearing a luminous pink shirt. "Yes, it is desperately silly, but what is the paradigm of the artist? The artist does stupid things with serious intent."

That is what Ai did when he made his parody, together with handcuffs and straw horses to reflect the lack of freedom in China. It was almost immediately removed from the web by authorities. In an interview, he told the Guardian: "We feel that every person has the right to express themselves and this right of expression is fundamentally linked to our happiness and even our existence. When a society constantly demands that everyone should abandon this right, the society becomes a society without creativity. It can never become a happy society."

That is what led so many people to Kapoor's studio, and it may spread. The artist said he had promises of similar Gangnam Style videos from Tate, MoMA, the Guggenheim and the New Museum in New York.

The participants may not be gracing the stage of Sadler's Wells any time soon, but they followed Khan's instructions – "One-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eight-nine-10-11-12-13-14-15 … turn … one-two … drop" – assiduously. Later, masks bearing the faces of imprisoned political prisoners were worn.

Most were Gangnam Style aware. "I've been to YouTube like everyone else," said Wallinger. "It is infectious, isn't it? It helps that the dance moves are a long way from Kirov."

The video will be put on YouTube as soon as its ready and follows the mass of Gangnam Style parodies already there. The original, meanwhile, by South Korean rapper Psy, this week went over the 1bn viewings mark – making it, according to one tracker, the second most watched YouTube video after Justin Bieber.